Snippets
by TheDarkLord'sMistress
Summary: 24 moments in the lives of Arthur and Morgana, from childhood through youth to adulthood. one a day until christmas.
1. Chapter 1

Just a little advent calendar for all the Merlin fans out there!

Chapters range from 200 to 600 words.

Enjoy=)

Arthur stared down at the newborn baby from his father's arms in confusion.

He didn't understand why everyone said she was beautiful when really she wasn't. She was all wrinkly and pink and overall utterly boring.

Deciding that he had been ignored long enough, the toddler struggled to reach the crib – the centre of attention.

The duke chortled at this, mistaking Arthur's behaviour as interest in his baby daughter."Go on, Uther, put him down. Let them get to know eachother."

The king carefully placed his son into the crib next to Morgana and ruffled his hair."He already knows who's worthy of his courtesy."

Seeing that interacting with the baby brought him both his father's attention and approval, Arthur reached out to carefully pat the girl's head.

She grabbed one of his fingers with a surprisingly strong grip and opened the most vividly coloured eyes he had ever seen to look at him.

While the king and his friend happily regarded the two infants, saying what a fine match they would make one day, Arthur Pendragon remained completely mesmerized by the tiny hand on his and the huge eyes staring back at him.

The word beautiful had just taken a whole new meaning.


	2. Chapter 2

Deciding that being well-behaved on the four day long coach ride to the remote duchy was more than anyone could have asked for, Arthur slipped away as soon as his nursemaid briefly turned her back to him. He was determined to have some fun before being forced into the stiff clothing he was expected to wear for the banquet.

The young prince had been strolling around the grounds for a while without finding anything of interest when he came across a beautiful flower meadow.

There was a girl sitting amidst a mass of daisies, weaving them into chains. A ring of the delicate flowers was already perched atop her black flowing mane as though it were a crown.

Wondering why on earth one would prefer flowers to actual jewlery, Arthur quickly walked over to her."What are you doing?"

"I'm making daisy chains,"she replied without even looking up."I would have thought one could see that."

If her elaborate robe hadn't already revealed her to be the member of a wealthy family, her confident tone of voice would have made it perfectly clear that she was no commoner.

"Well, yes, I can see _what _you're doing. I want to know _why,_"clarified the boy, annoyed that she was mocking him.

"Then maybe that's what you should have asked,"retorted she. Now she finally looked up at him."They're pretty."

"_You_'re pretty,"Arthur blurted out, biting his tongue immediatley afterwards to keep himself from saying more stupid things.

The girl smiled at him brightly."Thank you."

She gestured for him to sit down and Arthur obliged, still gaping at her in wonder. He had never seen anyone who looked so much like the porcelain dolls one of his distant relatives collected.

"I can teach you how to make them,"she offered, indicating the half finished chain on her lap. Arthur shook his head."No, that's alright."

She looked horribly disapointed at his reaction, so he hastily added"But you can make one for me, if you'd like to."

The smile instantly returned to her face and she nodded, going back to weaving daisies together.

Arthur watched her for a while, then he broke the silence."Will you be at the feast tonight?"

"Yes, I have to come. My father is hosting it,"she said. The prince looked at her in surprise."You're Morgana? I'm supposed to meet you tonight."

"So you're Arthur?"asked the girl. She continued without waiting for an answer."Well, this was a lot nicer than being formally introduced. That's always rather dull."

With that she got up and carefully placed the daisy crown on his head."I ought to go now. I suppose they'll be looking for me already. I'll see you at the feast."


	3. Chapter 3

"The king wishes to see you,"the maid informed the young prince. Arthur looked up at her in surprise. His father _never_ asked to see him during the day.

Overcoming his confusion, he hurriedly followed the maid, not daring to let Uther wait.

"What's wrong?"inquired the boy, convinced something horrible must have happened if his father was willing to disturb his education. The woman shrugged apologetically."I'm afraid I do not know."

The rest of the way neither of them spoke a word; Arthur mulling over a dozen diffrent catastrophes.

He was biting his lip in anticipation as he finally reached the throne room and entered.

There was a girl with his father, a hooded cloak hiding her face. The crest her cape bore was vaguely familiar but he couldn't quite place it.

As she looked up and he could see her face, he realized the same was true for the girl herself.

_Where _had he seen her before?

"Arthur,"the king greeted him."You remember Morgana?"

The prince gasped in surprise at the revelation.

Granted, the girl infront of him had the same jetblack hair as the young dutchess, but that's where the resemblance ended.

She looked as though all vitality had been sucked out of her, eyes swollen from crying and staring right thru him.

She had nothing from the smiling girl in the flower meadow he had seen a mere year before.

He had never seen a child looking so _old_.

His father's explanation washed over him -something about an attack and her father perishing- as he continued to stare at Morgana perplexed.

"I trust you'll make Morgana feel at home here,"Uther finished. Arthur nodded, offering the other child what he hoped to be a reassuring smile."Welcome in Camelot, Morgana."


	4. Chapter 4

Morgana had been in Camelot for a good two months now and in all that time, Arthur had seen her smile only once.

It had been while she was reading and as he had found out, the book was full of stories about fairies.

So Arthur made a plan to get her to smile again.

__________________________  
"And these powders will make fire change its colour?"inquired the boy. Gaius nodded."But it is only able to create very few colours due to-"

"Oh, a few's enough,"Arthur mumbled, not listening any further. The court physician raised an eyebrow but pretended not to notice that the child pocketed some of the powders.

He wouldn't be able to do any harm with them and it would certainly do the prince some good to take an interest in the things his father deemed to unimportant to have him taught about.

* * *

That evening, Arthur sneaked out of his room and to Morgana's chambers. To his relief she was still awake which spared him the trouble of having to wake her up without causing a scene.

She opened her mouth to speak, but Arthur promtly cut her off."There are fairies dancing in the grounds. I thought you might like to see them."

The girl was out of bed before he had even finished the sentence, rummaging for a coat and quickly slipping it on."Let's go!"

Smiling at her enthusiasm, Arthur led her out of the rooms and along the corridors.

"Aren't we going outside?"asked Morgana as they climbed up the stairs to the observation tower. The prince shook his head."We would scare them if we went to close, wouldn't we? But we can watch them from the tower."

She accepted his explanation with a nod and they continued their journey up to the platform.

As they reached it, morgana immediatley hurried to its edge to overlook the grounds.

She gasped as she saw the flickering lights dance across the meadow.

She kept pointing and laughing; chattering on and on about the fairies in her story books.

Arthur was just glad his plan had succeded.

* * *

"Why are we doing this again?"asked one young man another down in the meadow. The other shrugged."Because the prince asked us to."

He sprinkled some more of the powder onto his torch before continuing to wave it around, turning the flames a deep shade of blue.

"And,"he added as an afterthought."He gave us _a lot _of gold."


	5. Chapter 5

Uther's panic-stricken expression.

Arthur under water.

Someone was screaming.

And suddenly, everything went dark.

Morgana woke up with a start but the screaming wouldn't stop.

Only when her panicked maid rushed into the room Morgana realized that she herself was screaming. Flinging herself into the maid's arms, she cried until her tears run out.

She hadn't been able to get the dream out of her head when she went to breakfast, convinced it must be a bad omen. After poking listlessly at her food for a while, she turned to her guardian."I think we should call off the boat ride."

"What makes you say that?"Uther asked perplexed."You've been looking forward to that for weeks."

Cursing herself for not coming up with an explanation before hand, Morgana just said the next thing that came to her mind."I wouldn't want to delay Arthur's education and this will cost him a whole day."

The king merely laughed at this."That is a very sweet notion, Morgana. But don't worry, one day will hardly do any damage. Besides, don't you think your birthday is far more important to us? We're going."

Forcing a smile onto her face, the girl nodded before going back to poking her food.

_______________

Vision time=)

Next chapter will be set right after this one.


	6. Chapter 6

A few hours later, Morgana had already as good as forgotten about the nightmare.

She was sitting at the ship's stern with Arthur, happily munching cake, talking about everything and anything.

"Why are you always carrying that stupid doll around with you?"Arthur asked after a while, earning himself a scandalized look from Morgana."Anna's not stupid! My mother made her for me."

Arthur hung his head in shame, knowing very well that she had hardly anything to remember her parents by."I didn't know that. I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize to me, apologize to Anna,"replied Morgana, holding the doll out to him. Arthur took a deep breath and quickly made sure noone was around to hear him talking to a toy, then he turned to look at the doll."I'm sorry, Anna. You're not stupid at all."

"Apology accepted,"Morgana declared with a smile."Do you want to hide and seek now?"

Arthur nodded, glad she wasn't mad at him.

__________________

He had barely started counting when Morgana let out an upset yelp. He looked up to see Morgana bent over the ship's rail, staring down into the water."I dropped Anna!"

Without thinking, the prince jumped after the doll.

For a few seconds Morgana just stood there and gaped at the point he had disappeared.

Then she started screaming at the top of her lungs.

It was only seconds before Uther showed up, a panicked expression on his face.

He quickly took in the scene -his terrified ward, his son missing and the way Morgana stared into the water- and instantly understood.

Morgana didn't stop to scream until the king pulled his son out of the water, his lips blue from the cold.

And he was clutching the doll to his chest even as he passed out.


	7. Chapter 7

When Arthur first thing he saw was Morgana's face; her wide smile contrasting with her reddened eyes."Thank god you're awake!"

The prince looked round puzzled. He couldn't remember anything after jumping into the water and now he was back in his room.

"I'd better get your father,"said Morgana."He and Gaius just left; I think they didn't want me to hear them talk."

"So it's that bad?"asked Arthur and Morgana nodded."You were unconscious for _hours_! I didn't think you were going to wake up again. And just because I was stupid enough to drop Anna..."

She looked as though she was about to cry, so Arthur quickly reached out to pat her hand."You didn't make me get her, did you? Besides, what kind of a prince wouldn't help a damsel in distress?"

The girl giggled but quickly got serious again."I'll get your father now."

"I'd rather you'd stay with me,"Arthur voiced shyly. With a smile, Morgana climbed into bed and put an arm around him. Arthur stared at her wide-eyed."What are you doing?"

The girl shrugged."That's what my mummy used to do when I was sick. And then she'd tell me a story."

"Will you tell me one?"requested Arthur. Morgana nodded with a smile.

"Once upon a time, there was a brave, young prince..."


	8. Chapter 8

"Look what I found!"Arthur exclaimed excitedly, holding something soggy rapped in his coat out to Morgana. She stepped closer tentatively and let out a delighted squeal as she realized what he was holding. Then her expression changed."Oh, the poor thing is half starved!"

"That's why I brought him here. He'll be my pet,"explained Arthur with a smug smile. The girl frowned."But your father'll never allow it! He sneezes all the time if a cat is even in the same room, he won't want it around."

"Well, of course I know that,"the boy replied snootily."But the cat will be nowhere near him, will it? And now I'll feed and bathe my pet, so he'll look respectable when I present him to father."

He was half way out of the room when he became aware of the fact that he had no idea of how to go about grooming a cat, so he turned back to Morgana."You may assist me, if you really want to."

__________________

Two hours and a lot of scratches later, the children had managed to clean the cat up nice enough and were on their way to Uther.

They hadn't gotten out as much as to sentences when the king already told his son to take the cat back to where he had found it.

Knowing better than to go against Uther's orders, Morgana and Arthur left without arguing further.

_________________

That evening, Arthur sneaked to Morgana's room when he was supposed to be asleep already.

He managed to wake her up without too much trouble, although she almost hit him over the head with a nearby book. He managed to jump out of her reached just in time."What the heck was that for?"

"Don't creep up on me while I'm sleeping, for god's sake!"she snapped at him."You almost gave me a heart attack. How was I supposed to react?"

Arthur shrugged and busied himself by lighting more candles."Not hitting me would be a good start. But never mind, look what I've got."

He opened the basket he had brought and out climbed the cat. Morgana's eyes widend in surprise and she reached out to stroke the cat."I thought you took him away already!"

"Well, that's what everyone was supposed to think,"Arthur stated."That's how secrets work, isn't it?"

_______________

Uther couldn't have chosen a worse time walk by. Upon hearing voices from his ward's room when she ought to be alone and asleep, he entered.

The children looked up shocked, attempting to hide the cat- and failing miserably.

"Arthur Pendragon!"the king boomed."I thought I told you to get rid of that animal!"

While the boy was still frantically trying to come up with an explanation, Morgana already rose to speak."He did. I sneaked after him and brought it back."

Arthur opened his mouth to tell his father the truth, but he had already rounded on Morgana. So instead he reached over to squeeze her hand briefly."Thank you."


	9. Chapter 9

"We have to dance?"groaned Arthur at the same time as Morgana excitedly exclaimed"We get to dance?"

After being once again lectured on what was proper for young aristocrats, Arthur had no choice but to admit defeat. While he shot Morgana a dark look for being happy about this ordeal, they assumed closed position as instructed.

* * *

A few hours of Arthur continually stepping on her feet, Morgana was completely exasperated."Quit treading on my toes, will you?"

"I'm not doing it on purpose,"the prince hissed back angrily."This is _hard_."

"No, it isn't,"Morgana retorted."I'm not squashing _your _feet."

Arthur glared at her."You don't have to lead!"

"Fine, I'll lead then. I bet I can do it,"said she snootily. The boy just stared at her baffled."You can't lead. You're a _girl_."

Morgana rolled her eyes."Thanks for telling me, it had completely escaped my notice! Now just _please _let me lead. I won't tell anyone. Promise."

Figuring that he would be allowed to leave if their tutor thought they'd finally gotten the hang of it -and hoping that Morgana would fail so he could tease her about it- Arthur agreed.

To his annoyance, she led perfectly.


	10. Chapter 10

When Arthur walked onto the training ground he came across Morgana wielding about a stick. Confused, he walked over to her."Morgana, what are you doing?"

There was a moment of awkward silence as she just stared at him, embarrassed that she had been caught.

"I'm training,"she finally stuttered out. Arthur cocked an eyebrow."Training for what?"

"To fight, obviously,"replied Morgana, causing Arthur to give her a dumbfounded look."What would you need to fight for? Girls don't need to fight. Men fight and protect them."

"Let's say I'd be alone somewhere and someone would attack me, then I'd need to fight,"the girl argued. Arthur simply stared at her."Why would you be somewhere unescorted?"

"Look, either help me or go away, will you?"snapped Morgana. Shrugging, the young prince took the stick from her."First of, you're holding this completely wrong..."

Several hours and corrections later, Morgana was actually able to disarm Arthur.


	11. Chapter 11

"You may now kiss the bride."

His hands trembling ever so slightly, Arthur reached out and threw back the veil to reveal Morgana's face.

She looked up at him with a smile, her eyes bright and her cheeks rosy.

The prince returned her smile nervously, his tongue darting out to wet his lips.

Morgana chortled at his hesitation, stepping closer and pucking her lips.

Her eyes fluttered shut as he leaned in to kiss her, one hand gently cupping her cheek.

The onlooking growd started to cheer when their lips met and the slightest hint of a blush crept onto Morgana's cheeks as they pulled apart.

She plucked one of the lilies from the bridal bouquet for herself to keep before tossing it towards a squealing group of girls who almost pushed eachother over in an attempt to catch the flowers.

Arthur offered his arm to Morgana and she took it, allowing him to lead her back down the aisle between their guests.

Morgana smiled up at him as shouts of "Long live the King! Long live the Queen!" filled the mild summer air.

* * *

Many years later – after he had lost Guinevere to Lancelot and Morgana to magic – King Arthur Pendragon wished it had been more than just children's play.

* * *

I really hope you played wedding as excessively as I did as a child, because if you _didn't_ this was probably rather weird to read...


	12. Chapter 12

Arthur stood next to his father, staring down at the scene unfolding on the marketplace. He always wanted his father to treat him as an equal but now that Uther had decided he was old enough to witness an execution, he wished he would treat him like a child again.

It was his duty to support his father's decisions and until now he had seen nothing wrong with his relentless prosecution of magic but as the guards dragged the young man to the gallows, he couldn't believe that his father would actually do such a thing.

The man had never harmed anyone; his sole crime being to be able to do magic.

The young prince managed to keep his face emotionless, but his eyes were filled with horror.

* * *

As soon as it was over Arthur staggered away, throwing up the second he knew noone could see him anymore.

He was white as a sheet as he returned to his room, finding Morgana there waiting for him.

"Are you alright?"she asked timidly, although it was obvious he wasn't. Arthur shook his head, sinking down on his bed.

"It was horrible,"he choked out."_So_ horrible."

Knowing there was nothing she could say, Morgana rapped his arms around him; allowing him to cry into her shoulder.


	13. Chapter 13

Arthur was overly aware of Morgana and her friends still watching _him_ even though the round had ended and the next pair of youngsters was fighting to compete in the final.

They had been staring at him for a solid five minutes -only looking away to whisper and giggle every now and then- when Morgana walked away from the cluster of girls and over to him; her friends continuing to goggle at him.

Somehow, that made him a lot more nervous than fighting guys who were three years his senior.

When she finally reached him, she flashed him her sweetest smile."You were very brave so far, Arthur."

"Thanks,"he muttered, wondering when it had become so awkward to talk to Morgana.

"I brought you something for good look,"she said, holding out a tulip to him. Suddenly she looked as uneasy as he felt."I know it's usually a handkerchief, but I just thought this might be nicer, you know. It smells really-"

She stopped babbling as he took the flower from her and her anxious expression disappeared as he smelled it and smiled.

Just then a servant came over to tell Arthur the final round was about to start. Morgana offered him another smile."Good look. I'm sure you'll win."

With that she stood on tiptoes and pressed a peck to his cheek before hurrying back to her friends who by now were giggling uncontrollably.

For a few seconds Arthur just stood there completely dumbsrtuck, one hand touching his cheek where she had kissed him.

It was tingling.


	14. Chapter 14

"Arthur, wake up!"urged Morgana, causing him to awake abruptly. Confused as to what was going on, he just stared at her in alarm."What's wrong? Did something happen?"

"There are fairies in the grounds,"she declared with a broad smile. This only served to make him more confused- and slightly hurt that she'd make fun of something he had always thought she'd appreciated.

But as he didn't react and she simply pulled him out of bed and along the corridors with brute force, he started to wonder whether she just had a weird dream and believed it or was sleep-walking.

However, when they reached the meadow near the woods, his jaw dropped in wonder.

There were a good dozen fairies frolicking about, not yet having noticed that they were being watched.

"Dear god,"Arthur breathed, his eyes wide in surprise."They're actually _real_."

Morgana beamed up at him brightly, her hand still in his."Of course they are real. We saw them years ago, remember?"

Still completely flabbergasted, all the prince could do was nod.


	15. Chapter 15

Arthur had never had been nervous about giving Morgana her birthday present nor had a problem with choosing a gift. But this year was diffrent.

They had steadily drifted apart over the last few months, and while he still thought of her as his best friend, he sometimes felt like he didn't know her anymore.

Lately she was always surrounded by a flock friends, had taken to giggling a lot and was overall acting awfully girlish- which really shouldn't have surprised him, seeing as she was a girl.

Consequently he decided to get her a girlish present.

He had spent hours trying to come up with something that wasn't too tawdry and had finally declared flowers to be a nice gift.

But not just any flowers- no, he had pciked them all himself; selecting types of flowers that he associated with Morgana.

Ultimately he was rather pleased with the bouquet of lilies, tulips and daisies but he was still anxious whether Morgana would understand why he had chosen those certain flowers- and more importanly if she would appreciate it.

But when he gave her the bouquet and she flung herself into his arms so enthusiastically it almost knocked him over, he felt rather stupid for doubting even for a second that she would cherish every single petal.

_________

daisies- chapter two

lilies- chapter eleven

tulips- chapter thirteen


	16. Chapter 16

"What's wrong?"asked Arthur, sitting down next to Morgana. She had been uncharacteristically quiet all day and it was starting to worry him.

"I'm old enough to be counted as a young adult now,"she replied gloomily."That means I'll be expected to attend all public events from now on, seeing as I'm the king's ward. And that includes executions."

Arthur grimaced, trying to think of something comforting to say.

"Maybe you're lucky and there won't be an execution for a while,"was all he could come up with.

______________

She wasn't lucky.

Three days later, a druid was caught, charged with treason and sentenced to death.

Morgana stood next to Arthur as they brought out the prisoner, her face paler than ever.

She grasped his hand as the executioner trod onto the marketplace; clutching it so tightly her finger nails were digging into his skin.

She was trembling as the druid ascended the scaffold, a look of pure horror distort her face.

She quickly averted her gaze, tears streaming down her face as a loud thud could be heard.


	17. Chapter 17

"So, who are you going to ask to the ball?"one of Arthur's friends wanted to know. The prince gave him a puzzled look. It had never crossed his mind to go with anyone but Morgana. They _always _went together.

"_Has anyone asked you to the ball yet?"asked one of the girls, earning herself a confused look from Morgana. It had never occurred to her that she could go with anyone but Arthur. Afterall, they _always _went together._

But this time, it was a far grander event then usual. Aristocrats from near and far had arrived to attend. Two kings even- and he was quite certain one of them had a daughter around his age. It would actually make sense for him to go with her...

_Then again, a range of aristocrats from far and wide had traveled to Camelot for this feast and quite a few dukes had sons her age. She supposed it would make sense for one of them to ask her..._

But why bother? He'd go with Morgana and they'd have fun, as they always did.

_However, she could just aswell go with Arthur and then she wouldn't have to bother with making small talk and could enjoy the feast instead. Yes, that would do nicely._

Then a horrible thought occurred to him.

_Then a dreadful thought crossed her mind._

What if someone else asked her?

_What if he asked someone else?_

He hurried from to room to find her without even excusing himself.

_Muttering a feeble excuse, she hurried from the room to find him._

They ran into eachother in the hallway seconds later.

"Would you like to accompany me to the ball?"Arthur blurted out before embarrassment could get the better of him. Morgana beamed at him."I'd love to."

Both of them breathed a sigh of relief before going back to pretending that it wasn't a big deal.


	18. Chapter 18

Morgana felt ridiculous for getting so upset about Arthur paying so much attention to another girl, but she just couldn't help it.

She half-heartedly tried to convince herself that it was due to the fact that she just couldn't stand Lilian _at all_ but, dead honest, she was simply jealous.

Having enough of watching Arthur gallivanting, she left, hoping noone would notice.

But of course Arthur _did_ notice and -with a quick excuse to Lilian- followed her."Morgana? What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong,"she lied, blinking against the tears that were forming to her utter horror. Arthur let out an incredulous snort."You're _crying_, for god's sake. Just tell me what's wrong."

When she didn't reply, he just started guessing.

"Is this because of a guy?"he questioned after a while, sounding a little uneasy.

"I- yes, it is,"Morgana admitted, not able to come up with a lie in time. Arthur subconsciously clenched his fist."What did he do? Tell me who he is and I'll beat him up for you."

Morgana couldn't help but chortle."That won't be necessary, but thanks for offering."

After demanding to know details for a few more minutes, Arthur gave up asking. Instead, he reached out and gently tucked a loose lock of hair behind her ear."Just tell me if you want to talk about it. And remember, you deserve way better than some arse who makes you cry, understood?"

Unable to not smile at the complete oddness of the situation, Morgana simply nodded.


	19. Chapter 19

"It'll be horrible,"moaned Morgana."I mean, it took the people in Camelot _years_ to stop acting like seeing us was oh so goddamn special but these people haven't seen us in ages. I'd bet you anything that they'll get ridiculously overexcited..."

Arthur couldn't help but agree."But it's not like we have a choice, is it? It's my duty as a prince to visit all of my dominion every now and then and you can hardly have the people in _your _dutchy not even know what you look like."

Then an idea crossed his mind.

"They don't know what we look like,"he exclaimed excitedly, earning a confused look from Morgana; uring him to explain- which he promtly did."We have a whole day before we're introduce to the people. And they don't know what we look like. Tht means-"

"We can have an utterly _normal _day for once,"Morgana finished for him, her eyes gleaming with enthusiasm."Arthur Pendrgaon, you are a genius!"

_______________

It was late in the evening by the time they snuck away, both dressed in clothes they had borrowed from their respective servant and rather overwrought.

Not sure where to go, they just followed a group of people about their age, ending up in a badly lit tavern. Neither of them cared that it was filled with smoke and smelled rather bad, they were far to pleased to be – for once- not surronded by people who treated them differently simply because of their titles.

Forgetting all the restraint instilled in them by their tutors, they joined the other adolescents in talking, dancing and drinking; for a change not caring what anyone might think.

They both ended up absolutly wasted and snogging in a corner of the tavern.

Needless to say, it was the most fun they'd had in a long time.


	20. Chapter 20

"Stop being such a baby, Arthur,"Morgana said to the young man, who was groaning and clutching his side rather overdramatic. He looked up at her pitiful."Is a little sympathy for a dying man asked to much?"

Morgana simply rolled her eyes at this."You're not dying, as you know perfectly well. Gaius said that the wound is already healing and you barely even have a fever. Now please quit whining, will you?"

"You know, I preferred it when you used to sit on my bed and tell me stories,"said Arthur with a smirk."You weren't half as annoying back then."

She couldn't help but smile at the mentioning of their childhood and, without thinking, settled down on the bed next to Arthur. This was met with a warm smile."And the story?"

With a sneer, she started to talk."Once upon a time, there was a stuck-up, utterly irritating young prince..."


	21. Chapter 21

In retrospect it didn't seem like the best idea for just the two of them to go horseback riding in the woods, seeing that rumours of a especially vicious brigand band were flowing through Camelot.

They now stood back to back, desperately defending themselves against a full dozen of bandits.

It didn't look good for them when a young boy- no older than twelve- stumbled upon the scene. But instead of running away as one might expect, he calmly raised his arm, canting words unknown to them.

Suddenly, an invisible force knocked the brigands of their feet but leaving Arthur and Morgana unharmed. The boy gestured for them to come with him."Follow me. They won't be unconcious for long."

They soon arrived at a little hut deeper in the woods, into which the child led them."Grandmother, I'm home! I brought visitors, they were attacked by those rotten badmans."

An aged woman hobbled out of a backroom, took one look at the newcomers and then indicated the room she had come from."You two wait in there. I'll fetch some supplies and then I'll fix that arm for you, laddie."

* * *

"Timothy's out to fetch your horses,"said the old woman once she'd finished patching them up."I'll leave you two to rest now."

With that, she walked from the room.

Morgana threw Arthur an uncertain glance."You won't denounce them, will you?"

"After the boy saved us?"asked he incredulously."What kind of a man would I be if I did that?"

"The kind your father wants you to be,"she answered in a whisper."Magic is magic."

Arthur shook his head."But he's apparently wrong about that, isn't he? Besides, I'd rather be a good man in _your _eyes than in his."

With that, he leaned in and kissed her ever so gently. Morgana smiled into the kiss, deciding to enjoy the moment while it lasted.

But in her nightmares she had seen a future of darkness, magic and betrayal.

And there was usually atleast _some _truth in her dreams.


	22. Chapter 22

This was written before Morgause even showed up for the first time, so it's going completely AU from here on.

* * *

"Morgana? Is that you?"came Arthur's voice threw the dark. Discarding the idea to just keep walking, Morgana turned around with a sigh as the prince crossed the distance between them."What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same,"she replied calmly."Not that that would be necessary. We're still quite close to Gwen's house. You know, it's really not befitting for a prince to sneak around like that."

For a moment he was at a loss for something to say, then he simply deflected."Neither is it for the king's ward. What's going on?"

"I'm leaving Camelot,"she announced, her tone composed. He opened his mouth to speak, but she cut himoff."I don't think I owe you an explanation, Arthur. Just believe me, it's better for both of us."

With that, she turned to leave, but Arthur grabbed her by the arm, not able to comprehend what was going on."Morgana, please don't go."

She turned back and looked him directly in the eyes, a look of utmost determination on her face."I have to. Now let go of me."

Somehow, he couldn't help but obliged, staring after her as a strange emptiness filled his heart.


	23. Chapter 23

Arthur steadied his horse, not quite daring to believe his eyes. He hadn't seen Morgana in _years_ and now here she was, standing on the path as though she had been waiting for him- which might as well be true.

He dismounted, still staring at her in wonder. She simply inclined her head in greeting."Hello, Arthur. Long time no see."

"Hello, Morgana,"he replied automatically."Or should I say Morgan Le Fay? It's what they call you nowadays, isn't it?"

"It is,"she answered with a semi-smile."But actually I do prefer Morgana."

They stood there in silence for a while, neither sure what to say.

"I heard about Gwen and Lancelot. I'm sorry,"Morgana finally broke the silence. Arthur accepted this with a nod before changing the subject."_I_'m sorry for how things ended betwen us."

She shrugged of his apology."We both made mistakes. I came here to let you know there's now bad blood. And to make sure you won't forget me."

_________________

Arthur awoke with a start, confused as to where he was. Had it really been nothing more than a dream? It had all seemed so _real_.

A strange rustling noise filled the air as he moved and he hastily lighted a candle to find its source.

The bed was covered in forget-me-nots.

Carefully lifting up one of the flowers, arthur couldn't keep from smiling to himself."I could never forget you, Morgana."


	24. Chapter 24

Arthur got to his feet as quick as he could, not knowing where he was or how he'd gotten there.

He couldn't make out his surroundings due to heavy fog but he saw a figure moving towards him.

She came closer and as she reached out to touch him, the fog suddenly dissapeared.

"Hello, Arthur,"Morgana greeted him softly. He stared at her confused; it seemed she hadn't aged a day since he had last seen her, altough it had been many decades."Where are we?"

"I'm sorry to tell you, but you died,"replied she gently."But on the bright side, I get to take you to Avalon now."

He didn't comprehend what she was trying to tell him, and that was rather clear by the look on his face. She searched for words to explain the ancient magic, but failed miserably.

"It means we get to stay together from now on,"she said instead, getting an excited look from him, matching the way he had always beamed on his birthdays as a child."Forever?"

She nodded solemnly."If you want to, that is."

Smiling, he took her hand into his."It's all I ever wanted."

___________________

So, that concludes the advent calendar!

Merry Christmas=)


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